1901 - 1925
1926 - 1950
- 1931 Mukden Incident September 18 - Japanese forces create a pretext to invade Manchuria, start of Second Sino-Japanese War.
- 1932 First Battle of Shanghai (January 28 - March 3) - Battle halted by a cease-fire, leads to demilitarization of city.
- 1933 -
- 1936 -
- 1937 -
- 1938 -
- 1939 -
- 1940 -
- 1941 -
- 1942 -
- Third Battle of Changsha (December 24, 1941 - January 15) - Chinese forces battle Japanese back during another Japanese attack on that city.
- Battle of Makassar Strait January - U.S. and Dutch forces attack Japanese convoy
- Battle of Drazgose January 9 - First frontal engagement on Slovenian soil with the German occupier
- Battle of Moscow January 17 Soviet defenders drive back German Army Group Centre
- First Battle of Rabaul January 23 - Japanese victory.
- Battle of Ambon (January 30 - February 3) - Japanese victory in the Dutch East Indies.
- Battle of Singapore (January 31 - February 15) - Japanese forces capture city in Malaya.
- Battle of Badung Strait (February 18 - February 19) - Japanese naval victory despite friendly fire incident.
- Darwin Air Raids February 19 - Australian city hit by Japanese aerial attacks.
- Battle of the Java Sea February 4 - March 1 Japanese wipe out Allied naval squadron
- Second Battle of Sirte March 22 - Iachino is victorious over British naval forces.
- Japanese Raids into Indian Ocean March 31 - Japanese Raids against the British Eastern Fleet. Heavy British losses.
- Battle of Bataan January 1 - April 9 Gen. Douglas MacArthur'sUSAFFE make gallant stand, U.S. and Filipino prisoners of war forced on Bataan Death March .
- Battle of Nanos April 18 - 800 Italian soldiers lay siege to 50 Slovene partisans.
- Doolittle Raid April 18 - U.S. Aircraft bomb Tokyo, crash-land in China.
- Battle of Zhejiang-Jiangxi April 18 - Chinese and Japanese forces search for the surviving Doolittle Raiders.
- Destruction of Telavåg April 30 - German forces destroy entire Norwegian town.
- Battle of the Coral Sea May 4 - US loses USS Lexington; Japanese win tactically but lose strategically.
- Battle of Corregidor May 5 - 6 - Last U.S. bastion in Asia surrenders to the Japanese after prolonged siege.
- Battle of the Philippines (December 8, 1941 - May 8) Japanese victory, Douglas MacArthur promises to return.
- Battle of the St. Lawrence May 11 - U-553 sinks the Nicoya and the Leto in the Gulf of the St. Lawrence river.
- Second Battle of Kharkov (May 12 - May 28) - Soviet counterattack thwarted.
- Battle of Bir Hakeim (May 26 - June 11) - Rommel defeats Allies.
- Battle of Gazala (May 26 - June 21) - Erwin Rommel, reinforced by Italians, defeats Great Britain.
- Battle of Midway June 3 - US loses USS Yorktown; Japanese lose four aircraft carriers
- Attack on Sydney Harbour (May 31 - June 8) - Japanese submarines attack Australian cities.
- Convoy PQ-17 - 27 ships leave Iceland on June 17 for Murmansk – on July 5 10 ships reach Murmansk
- First Battle of El Alamein July 1 - British Eighth Army stops Rommel's Axis forces invading Egypt
- Battle of Sevastopol July 2 - Captured by Germans after eight month siege
- Battle of Changsha - Chinese claim victory over Japanese
- Battle of Savo Island August 9 - Japanese sink four US cruisers
- Battle of Dieppe August 19 - "Operation Jubilee" was an Allied attack on the German occupied port of Dieppe in France. Allied Failure,Information used for D-Day.
- Battle of Kursk (July 4 - August 23) - Hitler forces to call off attack on Russians due to invasion of Sicily.
- Battle of Stalingrad August 22 - February 2 1943 - City besieged by Paulus' German Sixth Army; from November 23 the Sixth Army is surrounded and destroyed by Soviets; bloodiest battle in history, 1.8 millions dead approx.
- Battle of the Eastern Solomons August 24 - Japanese aircraft carrier Ryujo sunk
- Battle of Milne Bay, Papua New Guinea (August 25 - September 5) - Allied victory.
- Battle of Alam Halfa (August 30 - September 6) - Allies vs. Rommel in North Africa.
- Battle of Bloody Ridge September 12
- Battle of Cape Esperance October 11 - near Guadalcanal
- Second Battle of El Alamein October 23 - November 4 - Montgomery's Eighth Army forces Rommel out of Egypt
- Battle of the Santa Cruz Islands October 25 - near Guadalcanal, USS Hornet sunk, but Japanese withdraw victorious
- Operation Torch November 8 - Allied landings in North Africa
- Naval Battle of Guadalcanal November 12 - U.S. defeats Japan. Turning point of Pacific War.
- Battle of Tassafaronga November 30 - off Guadalcanal
- 1943 -
- Battle of Osankarica January 8 - Over 200 Germans massacred all 69 men and women of the Pohorje battalion. Germans lost 19 men and had 31 wounded
- Battle of Velikiye Luki (November 19, 1942 - January 16) - Germans clash with Soviets.
- Battle of Buna-Gona (November 16, 1942 - January 22) - Americans and Australians defeat Japanese.
- Battle of Rennell Island January 29-30 - Japanese bombers sink a cruiser
- Battle of Guadalcanal February 8 - Allies take the island after a six month battle.
- Battle of Timor February 10 - After one year battle, Japanese conquer the island.
- Battle of the Kasserine Pass February 14 - 25 - Battle between US and German armored forces in Tunisia
- Third Battle of Kharkov (February 16 - March 15) - Nazi victory.
- Battle of the Bismarck Sea March 2 - U.S. sinks Japanese transports
- Battle of Blackett Strait March 6 - Two Japanese destroyers sunk.
- Battle of the Komandorski Islands March 26 - U.S. naval victory, USS Salt Lake City damaged.
- Warsaw Ghetto Uprising April 18 - 5000 Jews and 5000 Germans die, Jews confined
- Battle of West Hubei (May 12 - June 3) - Chinese forces under Bai Chongxi defeat Japanese.
- Battle of New Georgia (June 20 - August 25) - American victory in the Solomon Islands.
- Battle of Kula Gulf July 6 - Indecisive naval battle in the Solomons.
- Battle of Kolombangara (July 12 - July 13) - American ships damaged while pursuing Japanese.
- Battle of Vella Gulf (August 5 - August 6) - Japanese lose three destroyers.
- Battle of the Aleutian Islands August 15 - Japanese invade, but repelled by American and Canadian forces.
- Battle off Horaniu (August 17 - August 18) - Japanese naval retreat, subsequently evacuation of 9,000 Japanese men.
- Battle of Castle Turjak September 19 - Slovene partisans took the castle guarded by the Slovene village sentries
- Battle of Kursk July - Germans attack Kursk salient at Orel and Belgorod; Russians drive them back; arguably the largest tank battle ever fought. Heavy Looses
- Fourth Battle of Kharkov August 23 - Soviets liberate town.
- Naval Battle of Vella Lavella October 7 - Japanese win, both sides lose one destroyer.
- Raid on Schweinfurt October 14- The greatest Air battle among the Luftwaffe and the USAF. The famous Air Battle known as "Black Thursday."
- Attack on Rabaul (October 12 - November 5) - Allies launch successful raids.
- Battle of the Treasury Islands (October 25 - October 27) - New Zealand defeats Japan in the Solomon Islands.
- Battle of Empress Augusta Bay (November 1 - November 2) - Japan suffers a naval defeat.
- Battle of Tarawa November 20 - November 22 - First contested amphibious landing of WWII.
- Battle of Makin (November 20 - November 24) - United States forces defeat the Japanese in the Gilbert Islands.
- Battle of Changde (November 2 - December 20) - Chinese victory, Japanese use biological and chemical weapons.
- Battle of Cape St. George November 27 - Japanese convoy suffers heavy damage.
- Battle of North Cape December 26 - British naval victory over Germany.
- 1944 -
- Battle of Cisterna January 29- Part of Operation Shingle- the 1st, 3rd, and 4th US Army Ranger battalions attempted to capture the town of Cisterna.
- Battle of Kwajalein (January 31 - February 3) - American victory in the Marshall Islands, several Korean laborers captured.
- Battle of Korsun Pocket (January 24 - February 16) - Decisive Soviet victory.
- Attack on Truk (February 17 - February 18) - Successful American air raid in the Marshall Islands.
- Battle of Eniwetok (February 17 - February 23) - American victory allows U.S. forces to set up for an attack on the Mariana Islands.
- Battle of Hube's Pocket (March 25 - April 15) - Germans victorious, but have to retreat afterward.
- Battle of Central Henan (April - December) Marginal Japanese victory in China.
- Battle of Monte Cassino May 11 - 18
- Battle of Normandy June 6 - August 25 - Allies invade northern France across the Normandy beaches (Operation Overlord); hard fighting from Cherbourg to Caen; Germans surrounded and destroyed at Falaise
- Battle of Villers-Bocage June 13 - Germans defeat allies near Normandy during Operation Overlord.
- Battle of Saipan (June 15 - July 1) - American forces capture island.
- Battle of Philippine Sea June 19 - Major carrier battle; U.S. lose 123 planes and destroy 315 Japanese planes
- Operation Bagration June 22 - Eastern Front - Soviet offensive destroys German Army Group Center.
- Battle of Fontenay June 25
- Battle of Tali-Ihantala (June 25 - July 10) - Finnish stop Soviet offensive
- Battle of Vuosalmi (July 4 - July 11) - Soviet victory during Continuation War.
- Battle of Guam (July 21 - August 10) - 18,000 Japanese killed during American attack.
- Battle of Tinian July 24 - August 1) - Japanese, realizing they will lose, launch a suicidal charge against Americans.
- Warsaw Uprising August 1 - October 5 - 20.000 armed Poles against 55.000 Wehrmacht and SS. City destroyed in 90%, more than 250.000 casualties.
- Fourth Battle of Changsha (August) - Japanese capture nearby town, but unable to continue fighting afterward.
- Operation Dragoon (a.k.a. Operation Anvil) August 15 - Allied invasion of Southern France
- Liberation of Paris (August 15 - August 25) - Allied forces drive Third Reich forces out of the French capital.
- Battle of Guilin-Liuzhou (August 16 - November 24) - Japanese victory in China.
- Operation Tanne Ost September 15 - Germans unable to capture island.
- Battle of Peleliu September 17 - A fight to capture an airstrip on a speck of coral in the western Pacific.
- Battle of Arnhem September 17 - 26 - The major battle of Operation Market Garden; Allies reach but fail to cross the Rhine; British First Airborne Division destroyed
- Battle of Anguar September 17 - September 30 - Volcanic island captured by Americans.
- Battle of Tornio October 1 - October 8 Finns capture Tornio from the Germans, start of the Lapland War proper.
- Battle of Debrecen (October 6 - October 29 - Germans able to hold back Soviets.
- Battle of the Scheldt October 2 - November 8 - Difficult Canadian victory secures the port of Antwerp, and ensures critical supplies for advancing allied forces.
- Hürtgen Forest October 6 - Stubborn German defence, appalling loses to U.S. Army
- Battle of Aachen- October. Aachen was the first major German city to face invasion during World War II.
- Battle of Leyte (October 20 - December 31) - American forces begin the liberation of the Philippines.
- Battle of Leyte Gulf (October 23 - 26) - The largest air-sea battle in history.
- Operation Queen November 16
- Battle of Ormoc Bay (November 11 - December 21) - Americans prevent Japanese from resupplying Leyte.
- Battle of Monte Castello November 25 - February 12 1945 - Brazilian troops fight Germans in Italy
- Battle of Mindoro December 13 - 16 - U.S. Forces capture main island off Luzon , Philippines.
- Battle of Luzon December 15 - American victory.
- Battle of the Bulge December 16 - January 27 ,1945 - German counterattack in Ardennes; General McAuliffe says "NUTS" at Bastogne
- 1945 -
- 1947 First Kashmir War - Also known as the Indo-Pakistani War of 1947, was the first war fought between the Union of India and Pakistan. The war ended in a stalemate.
- 1948 Israeli War of Independence - State of Israel established on May 14; war with Lebanon, Syria, Transjordan, Egypt and Iraq; many Arab refugees
- 1949 - Battle of Kuningtou - Nationalist victory establishes Taiwan as the Nationalist refuge. Communists left in control of mainland China.
- 1950 -
1951 - 1975
1976 - 2000
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